Port Townsend, Washington

We left Seattle on Sunday morning, glad to be out of the urban trailer park, and headed south through Tacoma and up onto the Olympic Peninsula to Port Townsend. We had checked the internet and tried phoning about availability but found none. Fully expecting to be turned away, we checked with the campground anyway, and scored a beautiful deeply wooded and private campsite for Sunday night, and by a miracle, four nights on the beach starting Monday! With full hookups! All the RV books tell you to just show up when campgrounds don’t have any spots because there are always cancellations and you don’t have anything to lose anyway. Good advice!

Fort Worden was a huge military operation active from the late 19th century until 1953. It is one of three big forts guarding the straight of Juan de Fuca. It has been completely restored into a huge state park. Along with the museums and exhibits of the fort, there is a store, a restaurant, a laundromat, a conference center, and two colleges.There is lodging ranging from motel-style renovated barracks to full houses sleeping up to 10, and two large campgrounds with utilities and showers.  The setting is pristine, with heavily forested areas, miles of beaches, and views of Mount Olympus and Mount Rainier, the sound, and Whidbey Island.

Port Townsend is a Victorian fishing village and a ferry port. It’s very cute and we plan to spend a day in the many galleries and have a good salmon dinner. The sun is out, and it was very hot today. We moved from the woods to the beach then went for a long walk along the water. Doogie had a great time in the low surf. However, once the sun went behind the hill the temperature dropped precipitously into the mid-50’s and it became a little windy. We grilled a steak, but the top side got cold while the bottom side was cooking! No campfire tonight. In fact, I’m tempted to put the heat on. We spent 30 years camping in a tent and turning our noses up at people in RVs. We learned quickly, though that when it’s cold or rainy, there’s nothing like heat and a dry bed. Cable TV doesn’t hurt, either.

Friday afternoon we’re taking the ferry to Victoria and staying in a motel over there until Sunday morning. It’s less expensive to walk onto the ferry, stay in a motel, and spend Saturday walking around Victoria. Doogie can even go, although that will mean we can only walk around…no tours, no Buschart Gardens, no fancy restaurants. That’s ok. We can look at the Parliament buildings, the shops, and the Victorian architecture. I did try to find doggy day care, but it’s a holiday in Canada and everyone’s booked solid. The weather is supposed to be very nice and I’m sure we’ll have a good time.

Deer in our Campsite

We found a place to get our spare tire replaced here in Port Townsend - here's hoping our wheel problems are behind us. We are loving this place. People are friendly, too. Weather is perfect, but I wonder what it's like in the winter. This part of Washington is geographically between mountain ranges, and so is drier and warmer than Seattle and Portland.